Dr. Marcia Y. Riggs

J. Erskine Love Professor of Christian Ethics

Dr. Riggs is interested in the relationship between social oppression and socio-religious ethical praxis, ethical discourse that bridges the gap between womanist religious scholarship and the Church’s practice of ministry, the moral foundations for public policy, and the Church`s role in social justice ministry. She was named as a Henry Luce III Fellow in Theology for 2017-2018.

Dr. Riggs is the Founder of an applied ethics non-profit center called Still Waters: A Center for Ethical Formation and Practices, Inc. Still Waters’ mission is to provide education in conflict transformation theory and practices, particularly focusing upon the intersection of religion and violence. The Center’s latest program is REM (Religious Ethical Mediation) PLAY, interactive dialogues for envisioning practical ways to engage during times of conflict.

“What do 19th Century Reformers Have to Say to 20th Century Liberationists” and “Living as Religious Ethical Mediators: A Vocation for People of Faith” in the 21st Century” in Womanist Theological Ethics: Reader, Louisville, KY: Westminster/John Knox, 2011, chapter

“Escaping the Polarity of Race vs. Gender and Ethnicity” in Wading Through Many Voices: Toward a Theology of Public Conversation.” Edited by Harold Recinos. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2011, chapter

“For Public Education that Practices and Promotes Peace.” In To Do Justice: Engaging Progressive Christians in Social Action. Louisville, KY: Westminster/John Knox Press, 2008, chapter

“What Happens to a Dream Deferred?: Reflections and Hopes of a Member of a Transitional Generation.” In A Dream Unfinished: Theological Reflections on America. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2001, chapter

“African American Children, the Hope of the Race: Mary Church Terrell, the Social Gospel, And the Work of the Black Women’s Club Movement.” In The Child in Christian Thought. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmanns, 2001, chapter

“Living into the Bonds of Justice: A Challenge for Ethical Leadership into the 21st Century” in The Stones the Builders Rejected. Edited by Walter Earl Fluker. Harrisburg, PA: Trinity Press International, 1998, article

“Living into Tensions: Christian Ethics as Mediating Process” in Many Voices, One God: Being Faithful in a Pluralistic World. Edited by Walter Brueggemann and George W. Stroup. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 1998, article